Scott Walker has ambled his way into the presidential race, so it’s time for another candidate evaluation. I’ll be looking at Walker’s background, policy history, and explicit statements to determine whether or not he would make a good president. I won’t be paying attention to electability or likeability, as is often common elsewhere on the web.
Tag: politics
Should Some Americans Work Longer Hours? Jeb Bush v. Hillary Clinton
In a soundbite that’s been circulating about, Jeb Bush said that “people need to work longer hours.” Hillary Clinton immediately pounced:
Jeb Bush fired back:
What’s really going on here? Who is right?
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Piketty is Right: The Germans Never Repaid Their Debts
I recently read a fantastic exchange between the German newspaper Die Zeit and French economist Thomas Piketty. Here is the original in German–there is an English translation by Gavin Schalliol, but at the time of writing Zeit is disputing Schalliol’s right to publish it. Fortunately, copies of the English translation have shared elsewhere on the web. In the exchange, Piketty makes a point that is seldom made–Germany itself is a direct beneficiary of the debt forgiveness and currency devaluation policies Keynesian economists are recommending for Greece.
Continue reading “Piketty is Right: The Germans Never Repaid Their Debts”
The 4 Strategies Available to the British Left
After getting thrashed in the election, Britain’s Labour Party is gearing up for a leadership contest. This provides us with an opportunity to talk about the different strategies open to the left and the potential consequences of each. There are four that stick out to me:
- The Miliband Strategy–concede that the Tories are right that austerity is needed, but accuse the Tories of being too cruel and indifferent to the welfare state to be trusted with it.
- The Blair Strategy–enthusiastically embrace the Tory position on economic issues to demonstrate economic competence and political seriousness to voters.
- The Corbyn Strategy–mount a vigorous intellectual attack on austerity presenting a clear ideological alternative to the Tories.
- The Brand Strategy–attack the structure of the political system itself for being unable to produce good political outcomes.
Let’s talk about each one.
Continue reading “The 4 Strategies Available to the British Left”
Exposing the Myth of Austerity: An Interview with Benjamin Studebaker
A couple of days ago, I did an interview with Robbie Bennett and Jakob Lount from the People’s Resistance, an organization devoted to challenging the British government’s austerity policies. The interview predominately covered austerity and UK and US economic policy, though there’s also a little bit about me personally and my academic work, if that interests you. They have kindly permitted me to share the interview with you in full below–you can also read it on their WordPress or their Tumblr, and they are also on Facebook and on Twitter. The introduction and the questions are their words, the answers are mine: Continue reading “Exposing the Myth of Austerity: An Interview with Benjamin Studebaker”
